Ken, I saw George on this tour at MSG. Oddly he did a ton of covers like Now That We Found Love and on and on lol. It was fantastic. He did this song but in the verses stayed within himself. Yes, he did the aerobics but the tone of the song was more heavy hearted, and that’s appealing to me. What I find funny is I grew up a full on metal head but loved people like George, And many more. It’s funny that you hit on them as our earlier influences I.e. Foreigner, Purple, anything Dio are the same. I think it’s cool that you show you’re cultured musically. I won’t be pigeonholed in to one thing and I’m glad you are the same.

When you put together the whole package, the delivery, the texture, the intonation, the perfect pitch, and the ability to reach those he's singing to, no one...NO ONE...comes near this man, regardless of how much they think they might. This is a whole different level of vocal prowess and it will forever remain untouched. Music lost an original, a once-in-a-lifetime talent, an icon. There will NEVER be another George Michael.

George's "Kissing a fool" is about my favorite vocal ever. He had such an unbelievable gift. He could attack your soul like a bull or a butterfly, and all in between RIP.

Queen & George Michael - Somebody to love (live from Freddie's tribute concert) is out of this world. I'm so happy he was chosen for that song, it is outstaning! :)

Whenever George sang a duet he never tried to take the spotlight off the other singer. Sometimes George’s natural talented just outshined the other performer. George was such a perfectionist and he was always pitch perfect no matter who he sang with I would imagine they put a little more effort into their performance to match George’s natural ability. George was the ultimate performer and song writer. What a talent he was.

He had a personal understanding of the lyrics, so he didn't have to sell it; he brilliantly illustrated the vulnerability of the human condition in a way that people who have been through hell are able to.

I loved that...my father in law is a country gospel music singer and writer..hes won a few awards...and even he says that George Michael was the best singer of all time!!!

George Michael was amazing. Even his later concerts he was absolutely on point.

I cant watch anything with George Michael in it without sobbing. I miss him so much. Greatest singer/songwriter this world has known xx

This is my favorite version. I loved George Michael. Thank you for showing this. Edit: I'd like to add something to my comment..... I don't think what GM was doing when Elton came out was theatrics. I think he was just feeling it so much, that he felt the need to compliment Elton when he sang. He was so into that song.

It's Eltons song. He doesn't have to sell himself on anything. He and George complimented each other's talents. I didn't view it as a competition. Two great talents coming together for a celebration of song is how I hear it. When George introduced Elton, it was out of respect and admiration.

I can`t agree with you. This is one of the most beautiful duets. Every time I watch this I get goosebumps when Elton comes on. Two artists doing their best, that`s how I see it. You see and feel the respect and the love they have for each other. I wouldn`t change a thing.

George Michael was the greatest singer of all time. His vocal control, his ability was unparalleled.

Isn't it amazing how songs have so many memories for us, good or bad they are an integral part of all our lives. Also, George was an amazing singer. I'll always remember his performance at the Freddie Mercury Tribute too.

Agree, Agree, Agree. There will never be another not even close to holding a candle to George Michael, when he would sing, you can feel it in your bones, his voice was a story being told of such sincerity, and sensitivity, a beautiful person with a beautiful soul❤

George is one of the most soulful live singers of the last few generations. His range, connection to song and ability to convey the story is unparalleled.

George slays on this. I didn't appreciate how great of a vocalist he was. Started listening to him alot after he passed & was absolutely blown away.

George is something out of this world…covered so many originals and made them even better…and no one else could do that ever!!

Ken - As great a singer you are, this shows GM is from another planet. He IS the gold standard for me. His ability to move from soft and airy to full and loud in a musical way within a single phrase is unparalleled. e.g., "I took a change and changed your way of life." IMO

To this day I still get goosebumps when George introduces Elton and the crowd loses its collective mind!! Love this presentation. Great breakdown as usual Ken, thank you!

Great song! I agree George makes this song

I listened to this song a million times. I always asked my myself how does he do it. All his songs are soo personal. He is the one and only singer with that voice. I miss him so much. Glad I grew up with him. You will be missed for always😭😭

What an AMAZING collaboration, George Michael is magical! Thank you for doing this one!

George wrote most of his songs, played almost all instruments in his albums… an absolute legend….. he never compromised on the output whether it was his song or someone else’s and that’s why he was able to create magic even on covers…

I think George's velvet and Eltons snarl complement each other perfectly.

George Michael's vocals on this song is simply angelic.

I don’t think anyone can match George Michaels voice. Ever. Period. Simply amazing!!

I appreciate what you were communicating about being in the moment of the song to transmit a great performance. I always felt like Elton kinda “phoned this one in” even though an Elton phone-in is still pretty darn good. I always thought that George being a consummate professional and perfectionist was really pulling out all the stops to do his very best to pay respect to the song and Elton and the audience. George knew it could be an iconic performance and he put in the work.

when you're happy you enjoy the music but when you're sad you understand the lyrics.

Not in a million years Elton could beat George, I totally agree with Ken.

Ken, You are awesome, Man. Seriously. Every word and every way you explain George's singing is what I've been saying since I was 12 years old. He was powerfully phenomenal and his range and was spot on! He did it at Live aid and he did it again years later. That man was born to sing and for any private aliens he may have had, he knew it. On that stage he lit up because that was who he was. Thank you for expressing it! ;)

Here's an interesting side note to the performance. This was during his 1991 Cover To Cover tour and of course about a week or two later is when he made his only performance in Washington State at the Tacoma Dome. It was truly an awesome experience to watch the wonderful beautiful uber talented generous man known as George Michael 😊.. It is a memory I will treasure forever because for us George Michael fans he lives in our hearts forever.

Excellent analysis I still did not get over George's death, thanks for remembering it, and showing how big it was. Greetings from Argentina.

George Michael was an amazing live singer! Have you listened to his live version of Tonight (Elton John cover)? If not, you should🙂..

I get that same feels when i listen to George. No other singer captivates me like him. He is the epitome of Male Vocal.. ❤ Elton aint too shabby 👍😂

Thankfully you're still with us Ken!!! I'm also an official member of the "I did a lot of stupid stuff" club.... Great review/reaction as always!!!

Fun fact: Elton wrote his most famous melody «your song» in 15 minutes.

Also believe George Michael covering "The Long and winding Road" is better than the Beatles version.

No hate, nothing but love, appreciate your insights.

I’m a rock/metal guy but I have to admit “father figure” is a guilty pleasure, great song. Dare I say that a great song transcends both genre and time...

I thoroughly agree with you...George Michael's vocal was more complimentary. ..with no reason of impeding on Elton ..that's it really. R.I.P. Mr George Michael.

Jonathan Moffett (MJ's drummer) on the drums, Deon Estus on bass, awesome pianist, George Michael and Elton John on lead vocals, (adding Bernie Taupin, co-writer) .. this couldn't fail the test of time. George Michael was probably at his best ever at the time..

What a talent you were George! Thanks for all you gave us!

ever sins Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert 92 i knew george was the real thing and in his own league!!

He was such an under appreciated songwriter. And he never over-performed.

I never paid much attention to George Michael until he performed Somebody to Love at the Freddie Mercury tribute concert in 1992 & he blew me away. I don’t think I’ve heard anyone sing that song as well as he did & he nailed it in rehearsal too. Another loss to the world of music when he passed. And I agree, I’d rather George sang it solo. Nice to see Jonathan ‘Sugarfoot’ Moffett on the drums.

I also prefer George Michael's version

That's an awesome childhood story! I've chugged alot of alcohol, but gasoline never crossed my mind. Lol

Even Elton admitted in a video interview that George has a better voice than he has.

Ken thank you for sharing this, I really agree with you regarding George Michael, what an amazing Voice , Talent and Human being! Me and you are roughly the same age and it was very UN-Cool to listen to Wham or George Michael with my Motley Crew , Metallica friends however I was a Vocal Fan and cared immensely about vocal abilities , all of Georges albums and performances were recorded and portrayed with such emotion and depth, so loved his abilities . God Bless! Jeff ps, don't drink gasoline : )

I love Elton John... but the love affair I've had with George Michael started in 1983 with Wham's first appearance on American Bandstand. One of the greatest singer/songwriters in my lifetime. I never heard that man hit a wrong note, no matter how many times I watched something live. Did you know that George wrote music in his head? He only put lyrics on paper to work them out. The day he died, in my head, I saw all those beautiful notes we never heard floating up to heaven. I still mourn that loss. 😢 I would love to hear your analysis on George's performance of Somebody To Love for the Freddie Mercury tribute at Wembley. ❤

Ken, this is one of the best reaction videos you have done. I really enjoyed your commentary about the heart and soul of singing.

You have competitive energy today - good analysis

You saw this differently than I did. I didn’t see a competition. I saw Elton being Elton....he’s always been theatrical....he’s a diva, he’s admitted that. George, I was just enjoying his soul. I love it when he goes off. I see a lot of respect there between the two of them.

This is the song that got me into Elton when I was like 12. That was the start of one heck of a journey!

George Michael is just so unfairly left out of most Best Male Singer lists nowadays... We all remember Freddie, but George was a powerhouse as well! Love this video, love this reaction, keep up the quality content Ken!

This is the most fantastic duet I just love it so much

Thank you for a great content,Ken!I really enjoy the videos.😊

George was maybe the most talented pop singer of his generation. I miss him...

Great analysis, very insightful and very enjoyable.

The Barbara Streisand of guys. His version of "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" will make you cry.

Such a beautiful song love that song so much both great in there own rights rip to George Michael 🙏❤ love Careless Whisper ❤❤ but i agree Michaels singing is more intimate

This was a really fantastic video, thank you for making it.

Great assessment👍 Elton sang the song. Michael let the song sing through him. If that makes sense.

I believe that was Michael Jackson's drummer Jonathan Moffett

If you love George Michael versions of songs, I'd have to say "Somebody to Love" at the Freddie Mercury tribute concert was amazing. It was by far the best performance, and best sung version, of all the singers they had that day.

You re so right about george he had that special quality that grabs you speaks to your heart pleaseé( listen to the song you have been love)from him george michael every note he sings there is really haunting

I think it worked perfectly. Together, they played off each other like it was supposed to happen.

George had a voice like chocolate - so incredibly talented and a lovely guy to boot. Prefer his version too. Such a HUGE loss.

I never tought of that but you are absolutely right. It was a big diffrence in singing for me once you pointed it out !

I get I’ve come into this late.. like 3 yrs late.. but I need to comment. GM went up simply because he was matching Elton’s energy. He needed to.. if he didn’t, this song would have been mediocre. Matching Elton’s energy is what I believe, a true collaboration is all about. GM.. God love him, made this song the legendary hit that it is. He knew when to be his true authentic self and he knew when he needed to go hard to match Elton’s vibe. This is why this is one of the greatest collabs of all time. It’s because of George Michael. Legend! Can’t believe this is live. Just perfect ❤️

Great review! Love your videos!!

This was a VERY personal performance by George Michael.. at the time his partner was in the late stages of HIV and AIDS and died around a year later. Elton was in and out of deep depression and drug rehab at the time. Lets not forget Elton is post-op on throat surgery here and the voice never really returned to what it once was. George was always flawless in the studio and live... RIP ... we lost one of the all time greats.

George Michael was just so damn naturally good. Such a sad day when he died.

I'm glad you did this video because George Michael is my all time favorite singer. He just had the most amazing and unbelievable talent. He was truly blessed. Lou Gramm is my second favorite. Thanks for all of your hard work with all of your videos.

Take it away George this is all yours

Found your channel some days ago, and am absolutely loving your videos, they are amazing! Keep up the good work

When George passed I was so sad with how little it was covered. What an amazing talent and sadly not as appreciated like Elton is.

CALL 'EM LIKE YA HEAR 'EM, KEN! MAKE NO APOLOGIES AS YOU ARE THE MASTER!

Thank you very much for this review, Ken! I’m a huge fan of George Michael and was very glad to see such a detailed reaction to one of his best vocal performance!

Awesome! George Michael is my favorite male vocalist of all time. I know, not the most technical of course but just the emotion and tone of his voice really touches a lot of people.

Great video, here's my input: As the biggest Elton John fan in Michigan and only a casual George Michael fan, you'd assume that I'd think that Elton was all golden here and George sucked. No, actually I agree that George performs this particular version so much better than Elton. But I don't believe it's because George is a better singer at all. This live version is from 1991, when Elton was about 44. George was 28... big age gap and your voice does alter as you age. This is the case for Elton's range, for by the time he hit 40, his range was dropping and narrowing a little. Lets not forget he had throat surgery to remove nodules in 1987 and stopped singing for awhile. If you swap out 44 year old Elton for 27 year old Elton (the age he wrote the song), now you can fairly compare the two because Elton's pitch then was SO incredibly wide and diverse. Starting in the 80s, Elton actually began permanently rephrasing his songs live because higher notes were becoming difficult for him. These days, (and I've seen him live 5 times in 3 years) Elton doesn't even sing the "Oh no no no" part of the chorus in "Rocket Man". He actually remains silent for it because in the past, his attempts to reach those notes were kinda pitiful. But yeah, Elton's range in 1991 was not that impressive compared to George's, but as an Elton diehard, I was personally impressed with his power and those high notes he was hitting (those were probably the top of his range then). Besides range, I'll argue that Elton has an incredible ability, even nowadays, to change the tone of his voice, sing softer and add intense dynamics. George of course is equal in this department here. I feel that Elton's Aries competitive nature makes it seem like Elton wanted this performance to be about him, and that's completely possible. You got to remember he JUST entered rehab in 1990 and in '91 he was sober and new to the world. Maybe he didn't want the world to forget who he was, what he established, and not let someone else steal the show that subconsciously represented his life. If you look at it that way, it's truly beautiful how Elton sang so vigorously and passionately against George's softer, gradual notes. Elton's showing that he still cares about his song, his life and he is still sweet enough to have George a part of it. So I see a TON of soul in Elton's voice, coming from someone who knows his life VERY well. I would give them equal votes on this, but in this particular version I still think George had it together more, especially range-wise. He used it cleverly because he could... Elton was limited vocally and only had half the song left to give it his all. I feel like George already got his spotlight in the beginning and throughout, so I'm just proud of Elton for shining through like he did. Yes, a little vocal battle might've been going on, but I think it worked out. In general though, Elton or George as a better singer? Neither... don't think anyone in this world is better at a talent than another. You just "feel" it with some or you don't. I feel it all over with these guys in any song of any decade.

Yes both of them somehow seep deep into your soul with their songs .together.Double deep

Ken, I dig your way of approaching music. You make sense and you do teach people how to sing! I dig your shirts, odd comment I know. But you are the real deal! I have been in music a long, long time and you are correct when you say "where did the music go?" When my mood is down and I feel the world crashing around...I pop on one of your pod casts and things just don't seem so bad. 10 thumbs up !

You couldn't resist ..... and you were right !!! One of the best duets ever !!!!!!! thanks for this Coach Reaction !

Every time I hear him start singing this song I literally start bawling ...the emotion he puts into it, the vulnerability... He outsang Elton by far ...

George sang from his soul,and thats what you feel when he sings. And now I´m sad,shit.. :(

For me the song was all about George Michael. The voice, the blue jacket, his movements were everything.

George Michael was one of the best voices of our time. Please react to Somebody to love by George Michael at the Freddie Mercury Tribute. He actually sings it better then Freddie

This song just makes sense to me, I'm mostly a George Michael fan because of Careless whisper cause I play Alto sax and tried for Tenor but I like the high pitch, but man that's good.

Exactly as you say, George Michael sings to you personally. Not only one song, but the whole concert. Even in a big stadium it's very intimate. Because of that I fell in love with him when I joined my sister to a concert. So few days later we went again and a few months later once again. I compared it with a concert of Robby Williams who was on stage to be cheered at. George Michael is on stage to sing for you.

You said exactly what I've felt since I was a kid. I heard george start the song, Eltons song, then Elton came in and it was a completely different feel. Far less feeling in my opinion. Which is completely fine I mean Elton can do whatever the hell he wants to do and it still sounds great, it still is great, he is great, but George brought heart to the song because it means maybe a little bit more to him than it does Elton at this point. that was maybe written at a point in elton's life that he doesn't relate to so much at the moment he's singing it in this video. George Michael seems to have not only the feeling behind it but an extreme appreciation for the song and a connection to the lyrics and it's evident in his singing.

KEN TAMPLIN Thanks for sharing your story! I would love to hear more!

George Michal way much better for me, R.I.P. dude you were awesome 🙏🏼

Another spectacular reaction, nice man! Dont stop producing videos like that!

Love your comments about the showboating. Like you said, after Elton comes out, the feel of the song changed completely. Even when George participated in the "showboating" with Elton, he never tried to show him up. He was a consummate performer, and provided an excellent supporting performance.

KEN TAMPLIN ELTON JOHN & GEORGE MICHAEL (R.I.P) are Amazing! Thank you for sharing your incredible reaction & explaining the way he is singing! You are Awesome,my friend! Keep it up! God Bless you,ALWAYS!

Totally understand what your saying about this review. GM was killing it on his own. And I'm no singer but at the beginning as you mentioned had so much heart in it. Love the song with both. But the feel would of been amazing with just GM doing the whole thing. Love your posts. Just found you this evening. great job and I really enjoy just watching your feedback. Really is a joy to watch. Thank you and be blessed and keep up the great reviews.

Great analysis & breakdown Ken!!! For me, it is so difficult to explain George Michael's voice, & the affect it had on his fans, other than, it was able to penetrate even the toughest of skins, & touch the places you didn't even know existed.......I agree that Elton is who he is, and we love him for his theatrics, showmanship, flashy clothes, & entertainment factor, & yes his voice is quite powerful, but just not in the way George Michael's was, & he never even had to try.....I really miss him.....RIP velvet voice (25-12-2016) 💔💔💔

And they told this guy (GM) That he couldnt sing when he was a kid. So then he wrote Careless Whisperer, then things happend. Then he became the best singer, songeriter and preformer the world has ever seen! :D